The right to vote for people of color was hard-won, wrested through the sacrifices of brave generations unwilling to be denied. Efforts to disenfranchise Black and brown voters have persisted for years, from racist poll tests of the Jim Crow era to targeted misinformation campaigns of 2020. And in the post-9/11 era, each election cycle puts actual and perceived Muslim identity in the crosshairs. Lurking in debates about the border, the right to dissent, foreign policy, and other issues is a discriminatory logic that casts Black, Arab, Middle Eastern, Muslim, and South Asian (BAMEMSA) communities as threats to be policed, controlled, and excluded. The consequences can be extreme; it was only in May of this year that Muslim Advocates and our partner organizations finally resolved the last of the Muslim and Africa Ban cases that grew out of the 2016 election.

No doubt this year’s election will also have profound consequences for BAMEMSA communities—that would be true even were we not witnessing a genocide in Palestine. But for nearly twenty years, Muslim Advocates has staked a defiant claim to justice and equity for our communities. Many of you have asked how we are preparing for the election to come next week. In our view, the only way to prepare is to remain steadfast in our approach to legal advocacy by fighting systemic oppression, building power, and demanding shared well-being for the communities we represent and that we come from. That is a commitment we embrace no matter who is in the White House.

This time is marked by fear, anger, and despair. We are no stranger to those emotions. But we are also anchored by our belief in the power of the collective to bring about renewal through resistance—whatever may come next.